Whether he plays defense or offense, Ty Hudkins was still catching the ball and making massive plays to get himself and his school the first state championship ring.
Graduating in just a few months, Ty has built an incredible career at FHC. Football, basketball, and baseball have all been a part of his high school career, but football is his main sport, as shown by his commitment to Purdue at the beginning of his senior football season. He had already shown that he was an incredible player during his junior season, and most of his college interest began rising during the offseason between his junior and senior seasons when he was consistently working out.
“Obsession is better than talent,” Ty said. “You have to be obsessed with your work ethic. You have to stay consistent all the time; you can’t just want it; you need to practice, and you need to think of all the little things that you’re doing as well.”
Ty hasn’t made that switch by himself, as his father, Greg Hudkins, served as the defensive back coach for FHC. Ty said he has always had the same group and friends and family to assist him along the way and it’s one of Ty’s bigger motivators for his hard work ethic. As he got eleven offers before his senior year, his hard work after his sophomore year paid off incredibly well.
“I had been dreaming of getting Division I offers my whole life,” Ty said. “It has begun motivating me even more to perform better.”
Ty’s interception and an incredible touchdown in the state championship game showed that he deserved his offers. Having both an interception and a touchdown (which most definitely was one of the best highlights in the MHSAA playoffs) showed that he’s ready to play at the next level.
“I model my game after Brian Dawkins,” Ty said. “The way he hits so hard and plays with so much energy and passion is something I model my game after.”
Ty not only wanted to bring the energy and passion but also wanted the hard hits. Throughout the season, Ty laid the boomstick on plenty of opposing players, wearing “lineman pads” just to hit harder. He uses this physicality in basketball, too.
“When it comes to basketball, I’d say I’m like a Dennis Rodman,” Ty said. “I’m a rebounder, and I’m okay with scoring, but my teammates are like when Rodman was with Pippen and MJ.”
Ty has been on the team for basketball and football, and he’s been making history happen, as he starts in both sports; the football team won its first state championship win, and the basketball team won its first district championship win since 2015. Ty is excited to head to Purdue for more winning.
“Purdue is nice,” Hudkins said. “I’ve always had old coaches now, my dad, and my friend’s dads. They’re all kind of old, but when I went to visit Purdue, the head coach looked like he could be my older cousin, and my position coach is young as well. Super young, super energetic, and they’ve made it easy for me to feel comfortable around them.”
Originally Ty committed to Northwestern but decided to uncommit and shortly after, he committed to Purdue.
Ty knows that when he goes to Purdue, it’ll be much different, and he’s a bit nervous about having other people around him since he’s always had the same people playing with him every down of football.
Knowing that most of his coaches in high school were friends’ dads or even his father, he’s going to not be too used to switching. But it’s not as if the relationships he has built with teammates aren’t going to be lost as well.
“JT Hartman, I’ve been playing with him in the same jersey on the same side of the ball for so long,” Ty said when talking about teammates he’ll miss. “We’re best friends on and off the field, court, or diamond. It’s going to be crazy not playing a sport with him anymore because he’s been there for so long. Mason Mcdonald has also been there for such a long time on the football field, knowing how he’s the quarterback, we have such a good relationship too. And plenty of other people like Drew Fortino, Jacob Harleton, Alex Moeller, and Quinlen Sutherland. All those guys have been with me for so long, and we’ve built such a good relationship with each other over the years, both during and outside of football.”
Winning the state championship over the Mason Bulldogs 27-10, the Rangers brought home the first State Championship ring in the history of the school.
“It was insane, we had been dreaming of this moment since sixth grade,” Ty said. “Last year, they were simply just better than us, but we made Tim Rogers’ last year as a head coach memorable. And a lot of the coaches were parents of players so we wanted to make what potentially was their last year the best.”
